William Desmond's Trilogy, Part I: Being and the Between

This is the first of a projected three-part class series, examining in detail William Desmond's Between Trilogy: Being and the Between, Ethics and the Between, and God and the Between. Desmond is an original and significant recent philosopher. He has written many books and essays, and his Between Trilogy represents the fullest systematic account of his thought, "metaxology," which seeks to "word [logos] the between [metaxu]," to give an account of the dynamic and relational world in which we live and act. His writing is simultaneously systematic, rigorous, poetic, and spiritual. This class will read the entirety of Being and the Between, with attention for its relevance to Christian theology, spirituality, and contemporary cultural/political concerns. Each class will include introductory comments/summary, short presentations on the assigned chapters, and extended time for discussion. Desmond himself has agreed to join the class for a discussion session after we have read through the whole book.